(5 of 5)
Though some local and boutique brewers may continue to do well, the shakeout among larger beer companies will inevitably mean fewer and fewer choices for consumers. That is something that no beer lover can welcome. These days, when the bartender asks, "What'll you have?" the options seldom if ever seem to include such familiar names as Rheingold, Knickerbocker, Hamm's and Falstaff. Thus as the industry grows more and more concentrated, with fewer companies ruling more of the market, bits of Americana itself will continue to disappear. —By Alexander L. Taylor III. Reported by Stephen Koepp/New York and Paul A. Witteman/Milwaukee